Old Plank Christian Academy hasn't had much luck against Christ's Church Academy recently, but that could start to change on Friday. The Old Plank Christian Academy Defenders will face off against the Christ's Church Academy Eagles at 6:30 p.m. Both squads will be entering this one on the heels of a big victory.
Old Plank Christian Academy was handed a heart-breaking two-run loss in their last match, but they sure didn't let that happen against Westside on Tuesday. Everything went Old Plank Christian Academy's way against Westside as Old Plank Christian Academy made off with an 18-1 victory. The Defenders haven't had any issues with the Wolverines recently, as the game was their third consecutive win against them.
Kharis DuPree was a standout: he scored two runs and stole a base while getting on base in three of his four plate appearances. He also put up a double, which was his first of the season. Another player making a difference was Brody Strickler, who scored a run and stole a base while going 2-for-2.
Old Plank Christian Academy always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .576. They are a perfect 3-0 when they post an OBP of .513 or better.
Meanwhile, after only one run in their last contest, Christ's Church Academy made sure to put some runs up on the board against Cedar Creek Christian on Monday. Christ's Church Academy was the clear victors by a 24-1 margin over Cedar Creek Christian. That 23 run margin sets a new team best for the Eagles this season.
Jack Rose looked comfortable as he tossed 2.1 innings while giving up no earned runs off one hit. That's the fewest hits he has allowed since back in February.
On the hitting side, Christ's Church Academy got a massive performance out of Cole Hartfield, who went 3-for-5 with four RBI, two runs, and two doubles. The dominant performance gave Hartfield a new career-high in hits. The team also got some help courtesy of Jacob Ligmanowski, who scored four runs while getting on base in four of his five plate appearances.
Christ's Church Academy has been performing well recently as they've won three of their last four games. That's provided a massive bump to their 7-6 record this season. The wins came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 1.5 runs on average over those games. Old Plank Christian Academy's record now sits at 3-7.
Old Plank Christian Academy might still be hurting after the 19-8 defeat they got from Christ's Church Academy in their previous meeting back in February. Can Old Plank Christian Academy avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.